a huntress, an architect and an old acquaintance
by beast1996
Summary: The Titan war s over. The roman thing s over  in this story, that is . Annabeth and Percy go out. He s invite to Nico birthday. percy hear a sos from grover. he struggle between Annabeth and 2 other girls. i am a Vietnamese so sorry for grammar error.Ra:T


Chapter 1: I am invited to the 16th birthday of a prince

I definitely can't have a worse life than this.

It has been 4 years since i defeated Kronos on Mount Olympus, and became the hero of the Great Prophecy. Even the whole roman camp thing had been done for, like, almost a year ago. So I have been enjoying an peaceful life which I might say, it 's even more boring than listening to my girlfriend, Annabeth, babbling about architecture. I mean, even though during all those years, I usually said how much I want those moments when I don't have to think about Kronos killing me or struggling to regain my forgotten past. But now, even sitting on the beach and watch the sun rise like I am doing isn't that much fun anymore. I think that the only two things that keep me sane is when I am with Annabeth, which is very rare because she always busy redesigning Olympus, and my summer job as an swordsmanship guider for young campers.

For the guiding part, it was offered to me by Chiron when I was having my 19th birthday. He send me an Iris message, telling me that my father, Poseidon, god of the sea, after consider and discuss it with other god and goddess, want me to be part of a teacher to the new generation of heroes. Learning from the war, they want somebody who can ease the mental pain for the sudden change in young demigods 's lives and clear the thought of betraying the Olympians in their mind, so they won't cause harm, and so there isn't any better way to do it than to have their teacher be the hero of Olympus, to show that "how loyalty to the gods can make them great", like Chiron said. When I first hear it, I thought there was bitterness in his voice, but I didn't know why. Now I know. Even though I have make the gods swear on the river Styx that they will free the innocent titan, it doesn't mean they will trust their child, and some even think that all the demigods that work for Kronos had been influenced by Chiron, so they want to put me there as an barricade between young heroes and "bad influences". I don't like it, and want to resign, but Chiron himself convinced me that I should do it so he can spend more time on other activities, which will help the younger campers. But still…

I sighed, scratch my neck: "I hate my life"

"Even if you are the great Percy Jackson, the savior of Mount Olympus, Hero of Heroes?". A voice said behind me.

I turned back, to see a young boy, with black hair, black T-shirt with the word "Camp Half-Blood" in white on the fronted, a jeans, which is also black, and a silver skull-figure ring on his right hand. A sword was on his belt, yet I could still feel it slowly drain life force out of surrounding creatures, except for its owner.

" Hi Nico. What 's up?" I asked surprisingly. It is hard to believe, but even though he have a cabin for himself now, he still spend a lot of time wandering outside of camp, doing stuff that no one know what. But again, we do start to hear story about a young boy in black clothes showing in many places, helping some young orphans somehow meet their death relatives again when we are in the mortal world. We questioned Nico about it but got nothing, though I do understand why if he really tried to do it.

" Nothing, I just come to ask if you do want to come to my, uhm, birthday" Nico asked, trying to act normal. But I knew that he find this awkward. A Hades son's birthday party is weird, hard to imagine and promise to be a "one and only" party in the world. And he doesn't have many friends either.

"Sure, i...i actually looking forward to it. I even thought that you won't ask me to come." I answered, trying to sound excited. But I think I failed miserably.

"Why? I told you this like a week ago, when you were about to guide those young Hermes camper something about sword and fighting. Did you…?" Nico asked, his face show pure surprise, as if what I just said is my father just married to Athena, Annabeth 's mother.

I mentally kick myself in the butt. Why did I forget? But again, Nico picked that exact day when I was about to deal a bunch of brats who try to ditch class, pull prank on their siblings or steal Riptide and hide it somewhere so it won't reappear on my pocket, so I didn't really pay attention to what he said. But that is not a good excuse.

"I'm sorry. I had been so busy, that I forgot. So, uhm, when is the party? Don't worry I will come, I swear on…" I said, but can't finish, because Nico had faked a smile, which is even worse than if he start attacking me, and give me a black envelope with a silver skull that have the Greek letter Nu, which is equal the letter N in Latin, but write as Ni (which stand for Nico, of course?) as a seal.

"Ok I get it. For Zeus sake, you don't have to swear everything on the Styx river you know. Here is the invitation letter. After 7:00 pm, walk into some kind of shadow and it will help you shadow travel to the party, wherever it is, but don't tell Annabeth, ok? I want to see her reaction. And …"

"Wait, wait, wait. Wherever it is? As in you don't know where we will have this party?." I cut his talk, try not to sound freak out.

"Ye…No, I don't" he answered, his voice pleading, wanting me not to say anything and accept, but i have to ask.

"Nico, who gave you these envelopes?" I asked, ready to launch to the Athena cabin to rip this thing off Annabeth 's hand and tear it apart.

"My … father. But Percy, I swear…" Nico said really nervous.

"WHAT? WHAT DID YOU SAY? YOUR FATHER GIVE YOU THESE?" I shout, can't control my emotion. And how can I, with Hades, my immortal uncle who hate me as much as I hate Gabe, my stonetified (it is not a word, but still…) stepfather, ask his son to give me an envelope that could finally shadow travel me to the bottom of Tartarus?

"I know, I know what you mean. I thought about it too, so I had forced Father to swear on Styx river that it won't bring you to any dangerous place that can hurt you in any way." Nico said, trying to prevent me from strangling him.

"Well, a cell with no door, no window, no nothing won't wound me" I said sarcastic. 4 years ago, he "helped" his father capture and put me into a cell just like that in the Underworld. He did rescue me, but sometime, I still have bad dream about being smashed by the wall in that cell, or suffocated.

"I m sorry, ok? But this time, I promise it won't happen like that." Nico said, each word come out heavily. I look at him, then the invitation letter, then at him again. Can I trust him? But he will never betray me. But can I trust his father? But the war is over. Killing me now will only start a civil war between the Olympians. But what if he s still angry because I become the hero of the Great Prophecy, not Nico?

"Ok, I will go. But what to wear? I mean who is gonna be there?" I sighed, accepted his invitation.

"Thanks. And why do you talk like some Aphrodite dudes or something, just wear some casual clothes. And there will be Grover, Tyson, you, Annabeth, and surprisingly even the Stoll brothers and other cabin leader in the camp. My father even wanted to invite Chiron. Weird, hah? Oh, and Thalia will come to." He said, faster at the last sentence. Suspicious, but I will let him go, for now.

"Ok, see you then." I said, "I think I will go to my cabin for a morning shower. Train the Hermes cabin, bad thing to start a new day."

"Yeah. And oh Percy" Nico said while walking toward the Ares cabin (I don't think Clarisse will come, but who know) "you don't need to bring a present, you know? I don't like my birthday anyway". He walk away, left me alone with boredom again, until I come to the arena to see the young Hermes campers waiting for me there like another version of the Kronos army with more chaos. At there I felt sorrow.

After the training, I come back to the Poseidon cabin to find myself laying on the bed, ready to ask to resign again. This has to be even worse than to fight with Ares while listening to Annabeth calling me stupid or something. Then I think about Nico 's birthday.

I have to find him a present, because it will be rude not to do so, and maybe it will lighten him up a little. It is his birthday after all. But what, what does he like? The only thing he cares now is to learn even more about his past. Maybe the Mythomagic game? But how can I get the whole game before tonight, and he don't like it anymore, not since…

I jump out of my bed. That is it. That maybe is the only gift I can give him. I am not sure that this will work or not. It can even back-fire me. I ran outside, change my direction toward the dining room. And, at there, as if she had read my mind and decided to help me, sat an 8 years old girl wearing a simple brown dress and scarf. I looked at her, and then she looked back, her eyes reminded me of a cozy fire: Hestia, the goddess of home and hearth.

"Lady Hestia" I bowed. Hestia maybe the only god I even want to see, beside my father. She is nice in many ways, and is like a friend to me, even though to be precise, she is my aunt and the oldest in the 1st generation of the Olympians.

"Percy, welcome. I have been waiting for you". She said, smile at me. "Why don't you sit down for a chat, a family chat?"

I sit down, and she gives me a tray of snack which she got from mid air. I put a little in the fire for the gods, which is very awkward because I pray for Hestia 's help and she is right next to me. But she says nothing, just smile. We talk a little about Olympus, the Roman camp, and even mortal stuff, until I get to the point.

"Can you help me?" I asked, even though I know the answer. Sometime I do think that I have seaweed for brain. I m a son of Poseiden anyway, so why can't I? "you know, about Nico 's present".

" Of course I can, and i will, don't you worried" she said "he is my nephew after all. An aunt ought to give her nephew some kind of presents on his birthday, right? Just remember to tell him that it is OUR gift for him, ok?"

I nodded, although I don't know what a nice goddess like her would do if I refuse. Maybe she will force me to watch the hearth on Mount Olympus for her for a few years. That won't be bad. But who know what a goddess can do, even if she is the one who give up her throne for someone like Mr. D (thunder. I am sorry).

Reach to the fire (and I mean inside the fire, literally), she pull out a black stone, which at first I thought was coal or burned wood or something, but turn out, it was really hard, so hard that it may be too difficult for me to finish what I had in my mind on time.

" What is this, Lady Hestia?" I asked.

"Rock, from the Lethe river" Hestia answers, her face show a little sad, I think "that rock is the concentrated form of forgotten memories of dead sisters, who chose to be reborn, spend with their little brothers. Whoever has it can feel the feelings of a sister had for her brother when they were alive. But sadly, the brother can never feel it again"

After hearing it, I just know that it is the perfect material. But the tool, how can I cut concentrated memories and feelings?

"Just use Riptide, or else you can use other celestial bronze knife, like that of your girlfriend Annabeth" she said, the last words came out with a giggle. My face blushed heavily, but at the same time I sighed. I know that Annabeth is my girlfriend, but we almost don't ever said to each other, and when we do, it is all about quests or how she will redesign Olympus. We don't go on a date, we don't kiss again since that day at camp after I defeat Kronos, and we barely even hold hand. For 4 years relationship, even an idiot like me can feel that there should be more, and I think Annabeth expect the same, but we just can't work that out.

"Ok, thank you, Lady Hestia. I will tell Nico how much you help me." I looked up to find her staring at me, waiting for something. "What is wrong, my lady?"

"Are your memories that good? After all that years, are you sure you can do it without another help?" she asked

"No." I said, "But I don't want to live up those experiences again". One time is more than enough.

"True. But this present is important. Make it as real as possible is better than make it bad, even if it is for his sake". Hestia said. I thought about it for a long time, then…

"Ok. I think you right. So will you help me?" I asked. I think I have asked her too much for one day.

"If you don't want to be in debt with me, how about an offering?" she said gently, but it still bother me that everybody around me seem to always read my mind, god or not god. Am I that easy to read?

"Offer what? I don't have any Namean skin or something like that." I asked, confused. She wouldn't say something like that if she knew I have nothing special to offer, right? But at that moment I was brought back into my memories by her power. I started seeing visions, visions of that one person who always made me feel agony. Something Hestia said still stuck in my mind, just don't get away even when the flashback was overwhelmed.

"You will know, soon enough."


End file.
